Hounds, hags and kidnappings

It’s time to kick-off another week of fabulous story-telling in voice, brought to Second Life by the staff and volunteers at the Seanchai Library.

As always, all times SLT / PDT, and unless otherwise stated, events will be held on the Seanchai Library’s home on Imagination Island.

Sunday November 2nd,13:30: Tea-time at Baker Street: The Hound of the Baskervilles

Caledonia Skytower, Corwyn Allen and Kayden Oconnell invite you to join them as they return to what is quite possibly the most famous of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s works, and present their fourth reading from The Hound of the Baskervilles.

The third full-length novel written about Sherlock Holmes, this is likely to be the one Holmesian story which – at least in outline – known to most, whether or not they have actually read any of Holmes’ adventures.

But do they know it as it was originally written? Over the decades the story has been adapted for film and television more than 20 times, starting as early as 1914/15 with the 4-part series, Der Hund von Baskerville, and continuing on through to Paul McGuigan’s The Hounds of Baskerville, featured in the BBC’s brilliant Sherlock series.

All of these adaptations have offered their own take on the tale. Some – such as McGuigan’s, have simply taken the title of the story and used it to weave a unique tale of their own; others have stayed true to the basics of the story whilst also adding their own twists and turns quite outside of Conan Doyle’s plot in order to keep their offering fresh and exciting to an audience.

So why not join Cale, Corwyn and Kayden as they continue reading from the 1902 original, and discover just how Sir Arthur Conan Doyle unfolded this apparently supernatural tale of giant hounds and murder, and the pivotal role played by John Watson himself?

Monday November 3rd, 19:00: The Witches of Karres

There’s an old saying that no good deed ever goes unpunished. Such is the case for Captain Pausert, inexperienced space trader, skipper (and sole crew member) of the old Venture. After rescuing three young girls enslaved on the planet Porlumma, he found himself plunged in intrigue, adventure and pursuit by forces from all sides, few of them with his best interests at heart, and all of which draw him into further adventures that might just have had him wishing for the simpler days of space trading…

Join Gyro Muggins as he once again delves into the rip-roaring mix of space opera, fantasy and hard science-fiction which started with James H. Schmitz’s The Witches of Karres, first published in 1949 prior to being expanded into a full-length novel. In time, the story was followed by two further volumes, The Wizard of Karres (2004), by Mercedes Lackey, Eric Flint, and Dave Freer, and The Sorceress of Karres (2010), again by Flint and Freer, all of which form the rich well of adventures from which Gyro draws

Tuesday November 4th,19:00 More Cailleach Tales

In Irish and Scottish mythology, the Cailleach is a divine hag, and regarded as a creatrix. In Scotland, for example, she is credited with making many mountains and high hills, and is also regarded as the mother of all the gods and goddesses. She’s also said to be the personification of winter.

Find out more by joining Aoife Niphredil at Seanchai Library.

Wednesday November 5th, 19:00: Kidnapped

Caledonia Skytower commences reading from one of Robert Louis Stevenson’s most well-known works. First published in serial form in the magazine Young Folks between May and July 1886, Kidnapped is perhaps best summarised by simply giving the story its original full title:

Kidnapped: Being Memoirs of the Adventures of David Balfour in the Year 1751: How he was Kidnapped and Cast away; his Sufferings in a Desert Isle; his Journey in the Wild Highlands; his acquaintance with Alan Breck Stewart and other notorious Highland Jacobites; with all that he Suffered at the hands of his Uncle, Ebenezer Balfour of Shaws, falsely so-called: Written by Himself and now set forth by Robert Louis Stevenson

When first published, due in part to its title, the book was at first thought to have been autobiographical, and David Balfour a real person. This impression was added to by the fact that several of the characters – including the Alan Breck Stewart mentioned in the title – were real people, while a part of the story involves matters related to the very real Appin Murder, which followed the Jacobite Rising of 1745. The novel has also drawn strong comparisons with the true-life story of James Annesley, which also influenced Sir Walter Scott in writing his Guy Mannering.

So why not join Cale as she opens the covers of this most intriguing of stories?

Thursday November 6th

19:00: Don’t Open This Book!

With Shandon Loring.

21:00 Seanchai Late Night

With Finn Zeddmore.

Saturday November 8th: Seanchai at the OpenSimulator Conference

Caledonia Skytower and Shandon Loring will be presenting Library Out Loud at the 2nd annual OpenSimulator Community Conference, on Saturday November 8th, at 09:00 SLT. The presentation will be streamed live, and available on YouTube at some point afterwards.

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Please check with the Seanchai Library SL’s blog for updates and for additions or changes to the week’s schedule. The featured charity for November – December is Heifer International, which is working with communities to end world hunger and poverty and to care for the Earth.

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